Khiva has been declared the tourism capital of the Islamic world in 2024. The decision was made at the 11th session of the Council of Ministers of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) in Baku.
According to the Ministry of Tourism and Cultural Heritage, OIC members recognized the reforms carried out in the field of tourism - visa facilitation, preservation of cultural heritage and improvement of historical cities as key factors for bid win.
“As the tourism capital of the Islamic world, Khiva will host a meeting of tourism ministers and heads of tourism administrations of 57 OIC member countries, scientific conferences, workshops, photo exhibitions, art expositions will be organized and held at a high level, revealing the potential of pilgrimage tourism. On the basis of the International University of Tourism and Cultural Heritage, founded on the initiative of the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan in 2018, a number of events will be held to help explore and expand opportunities in the field of science and education with the participation of scientists and researchers from the OIC member countries,” said the head of the delegation Uzbekistan Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Tourism and Cultural Heritage Aziz Abdukhakimov.
5 cities bid for the title of the tourist capital of the Islamic world:
- Abu Dhabi (UAE);
- Şanlıurfa (Turkiye)
- Lagos (Nigeria);
- Dushanbe (Tajikistan);
- Khiva (Uzbekistan).
